Honest
Abe, Adversity and the Power Dilemma
Jürgen Oschadleus MBA PMP®
Yet another natural disaster
has struck the Pacific region, and our heartfelt
commiserations go out to the people of Japan. As
with Queensland in January and Christchurch in
February, our fortitude is challenged in the face of
extreme adversity.
But around the world, the
fortitude of people is also being challenged by
something more insidious – the abuse of power. In
recent days Egypt and Bangladesh rose up against it,
and Libyans are attempting to do so right now. There
is a famous statement, often erroneously attributed
to Abraham Lincoln, which states:
“Almost anyone can overcome adversity. If you
want to see the real measure of a man, give him
power.”
Although the quote actually
belongs to French writer Francois
Duc de la Rochefoucau (1613-1680, Maxim 99),
it is nevertheless an apt tribute to the 16th
President of the USA, nicknamed “Honest Abe”. He is
widely regarded as one of the greatest of American
leaders. Few people demonstrate the character and
tenacity required of leaders as well as he does.
Lincoln (1809-1865) emerged
from very humble origins to a position of great
power, despite his lack of money, education or
powerful friends. He was raised in a poor family on
the western frontier of the fledging USA. His mother
passed away when he was only nine, and other than 18
months of itinerant teachers, he was mostly
self-educated. Frequently mocked for his looks, he
had to deal with several breakups of engagements,
and suffered the anguish of losing three of his four
children in infancy.
Yet he refused to bow to the
adversity he faced in life, teaching himself the
skills necessary to become a postmaster, county
surveyor, a successful country lawyer, an Illinois
state legislator, and a one-term member of the
United States House of Representatives. He became
the only US President to hold a patent (for a
"device to buoy vessels over shoals"), although the
device was never commercialized.
Initial Foray into Politics Lincoln’s first foray into
politics came in the 1832 election for the State of
Illinois General Assembly. As a 23 year old, he
garnered 277 of the 300 votes from his precinct, yet
still failed to win a seat. Instead, he taught
himself law and became a feared adversary in
cross-examinations.
He remained active in State
politics, serving four terms as a state legislator
while continuing to build his law practice. In 1846
he was elected to the US House of Representatives as
the sole Whig member for Illinois, but two years
later was passed over for the lucrative post of
Commissioner of the General Land Office. He returned
to his law practice and increasingly appeared before
the Illinois State Supreme Court and even the United
States Supreme Court, in cases which entered
American legal case history.
Paltry education
notwithstanding, Lincoln was an intellectual and a
consummate orator. Yet notable as his legal
achievements were, his stature emerged in his
actions as President of the USA.
The Path to the Presidency Lincoln’s “Peoria Speech” on 16
October 1854 marked a turning point in his career
and set him firmly on a path towards the presidency.
He strongly condemned “the monstrous injustice of
slavery itself. I hate it because it deprives our
republican example of its just influence in the
world...”.
In the same year he
unsuccessfully contested an Illinois seat in the
United States Senate, and two years later placed
second in the contest to become the Republican
candidate for Vice President.
Undeterred, Lincoln continued
speaking out, initially against the extension of
slavery into other parts of the USA, but later
against the continued existence of slavery as a
whole. In 1858 he again contested a seat for the US
Senate, but despite winning the popular vote, failed
to dislodge the Democratic Party Senator, Stephen
Douglas. Bitter as defeat was for
Lincoln, his seven debates against the Democratic
incumbent brought him to national prominence. His
intellectual leadership and strong convictions,
coupled with a willingness to listen to the views of
others, and his ability to articulate the key issues
with oratorical skills elevated him to the forefront
of the Republican Party and secured his nomination
for the 1860 Presidential election, where his life
story played a prominent part in the campaign. The
Republicans repeatedly emphasized the strength of a
system which allowed a common farm boy to work his
way to the top of the political hierarchy through
sheer effort (Barack Obama did much the same in his
campaign to win the US Presidency, and he frequently
quoted Lincoln in the process). Lincoln won 40% of the popular
vote, with the balance distributed among his three
rivals (one of whom was the former Illinois Senator,
Douglas). The electoral vote secured him 180 votes
against the combined 123 cast for his three
opponents.
But Lincoln had to deal with an
immediate challenge to his authority: he had not
appeared on the ballot in ten Southern States, and
after his election seven of those States immediately
declared themselves a sovereign nation, the
Confederate States of America, and elected their own
President, Jefferson Davis. Lincoln had to travel to
his own inauguration in disguise after discovering a
plot to assassinate him. Even so, he used his
inaugural speech to promote peace and the
preservation of the Union.
The Power of the President
and the Measure of the Man Lincoln had overcome adversity
and setbacks in his life. Now that he had the power
to act, his true measure became apparent as the
country plunged into its greatest internal crisis,
the Civil War of 1861-1865. In the early months of his
presidency, Lincoln continued believing he could
preserve the Union without bloodshed, and he refused
to engage in military conflict. He made it clear
that the Union would not fire the first shot, but
nor would he surrender any forts in the South. On 12
April 1861 Confederate forces fired on Union troops
at Fort Sumter and the war began.
Many believed it would be over
within 90 days, but for the bulk of his presidency
Lincoln was embroiled in a military and political
campaign to reunify the country. As Commander in
Chief, he used unprecedented powers to impose a
blockade, to disburse funds before appropriation by
Congress, and to suspend the writ of
habeas corpus, arresting and
imprisoning thousands of suspected Confederate
sympathizers without warrant or trial. Yet Lincoln steadfastly refused
to let power corrupt him. Instead, he utilised power
to promote the cause of emancipating slaves and
seeking the restoration of the Union. He
deliberately pulled into his cabinet leaders of
various factions within both political parties and
used patronage to pressure them to cooperate with
him. His response to dealing with
free slaves matured as he listened to ideas of his
advisors. He dropped the idea of colonies of freed
slaves, in favour of fully abolishing slavery
throughout the Union, and even set up a regiment of
former slaves to participate in the war, believing
it would send a powerful message to the Confederate
soldiers. He read widely on military
tactics and closely supervised the war effort,
especially the selection of top generals, replacing
them when they failed to deliver results or when he
received evidence of the poor performance or
inappropriate conduct. Once he realised that his
generals resented “civilian” interference, he
changed his approach, allowing his War Secretary and
general-in-chief to act as intermediary, rather than
micro-managing every aspect of the war.
His Gettysburg Address of 1863
has become one of the most quoted speeches in
history, providing an iconic statement of America’s
dedication to the principles of nationalism, equal
rights, liberty, and democracy. Despite the war
dragging on into a fourth year, and with increasing
criticism from those who condemned him for refusing
to compromise on the slavery issue as well as those
who believed he was not harsh enough in dealing with
the Confederate States, Lincoln successfully
campaigned for re-election in November 1864. With the end of war in sight,
Lincoln used his second inaugural speech on 4 March
1865 to call for reconciliation and reconstruction:
“Fondly do we hope—fervently do we pray—that
this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. …
With malice toward none; with charity for
all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to
see the right,
let us strive on to finish the work we are
in; to bind up the nation's wounds; to care for him
who shall have
borne the battle, and for his widow, and his
orphan—to do all which may achieve and cherish a
just and
lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all
nations.”
The Confederate capital fell a
month later. While Lincoln quietly walked through
the city, a General approached him for instructions
on how to treat the defeated troops, to which the
President replied: “Let 'em up easy.”
It was the simple instruction
of a man who believed in the equality and dignity of
all men.
Lincoln’s Legacy On 11 April 1865, two days
after the official end of the American Civil War and
slavery abolished, President Abraham Lincoln’s
commitment to equality for all men was expressed in
a call to extend voting rights to blacks. In this
respect Lincoln was ahead of his time.
John Wilkes Booth, a well-known
actor and Confederate spy, was incensed by the
speech and resolved to assassinate the American
President. Three days later, on 14 April, he crept
up on an unsuspecting and unguarded President and
shot him in the back of the head at close range.
The bullet brought to an
untimely end the life of a great leader who stood by
his convictions, who endured hardship and adversity
in pursuing what he believed to be the right course
for his people.
The bullet ended a life, but it
ensured Lincoln’s work would transcend his life, to
become a legacy to all the ages. He
was a man who defied the odds to achieve power, yet
used that power in pursuit of equality, liberty and
freedom for all.
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